In 1932, slugger Babe Ruth hit .341, with 41 home runs and 137 RBIs, helping the Yankees to a pennant. During their World Series sweep of the Cubs, Ruth signaled to Wrigley Field's deepest recess and swatted a 490-foot homer to cement his legend. That same year, jazz's Sultan of Scat also cemented his legend, but with a distinctly less stellar team. Backed by antiquated plunking banjo and whiny saxophones, Louis Armstrong leads off with terrific muted trumpeting, advances to an effectively offhand vocal, then scores with his smashing, Homeric open horn. But why was he playing with bush leaguers?

1Rico Detroit// May 17, 2009 at 03:59 AM
Armstrong’s rendition of “All Of Me” was one of the top hits of 1932 and remains one of the best interpretations of this standard. It is a lovely song with bittersweet lyrics of unrequited love: “You took the part that once was my heart / oh, why not take all of me?” The words occasionally get muddled as Armstrong twists them into a mumble, but musically the effect of this is sublime and the emotional weight of the lyrics is undiminished. Likewise, Armstrong’s trumpet playing is mostly subdued but still striking. Subtly informed by Armstrong’s genius jazz instincts, this pop gem becomes utterly irresistible.
- Three Perfect Minutes (http://www.threeperfectminutes.com)